British and Irish come together at Pembrey
This weekend's event at Pembrey (September 28) provides Rallycross fans with a double measure of action as the British and Irish championships share the bill. The sixth and penultimate round of the Kumho Tyres MSA British Rallycross Championship will be joined at the Welsh circuit by the first round of the 2008-2009 Motorsport Ireland Rallycross Championship which runs through the winter and into next spring.
With five of the seven events completed, current champion Ollie O'Donovan (London) leads the Kumho Tyres MSA British Rallycross Championship, the Peugeot driver having returned to the top of the points chart after finishing second at Lydden in round five on August Bank Holiday Monday. O'Donovan is now 12 points ahead of round four winner Lawrence Gibson (Banbridge) with Steve Hill (Aylesbury) a further three points down in third place. Hill won at Lydden last month and also won the third round of the championship when it visited Pembrey in May.
Out of the title race after missing a round of the championship earlier in the year, but back in fine form and aiming to make his mark by taking some top results, former champion Pat Doran (Winkleigh) finished third at Lydden. Doran's son, Liam, also races in the championship and has been among the quickest drivers all year, but has yet to gain a result that matches his pace as his Ford RS200 has suffered technical problems several times.
Local racers in the frame Two locally based racers are aiming for home glory at Pembrey. Mike Manning (Carmarthen) has not contested the British championship this year, but is set to drive his Ford Puma in the headlining Supercar class. Manning will have a new engine in his Puma for the event and is determined to succeed on his favourite track.
Mike Howlin (Haverfordwest) has raced regularly in the SuperModified class with his Ford Fiesta Cosworth and is currently placed fifth in the class but hoping to move up after making improvements to his car.
Form a little further away, Ben Power (Welshpool) has made an impressive fight back into contention for the SuperModified class title. The teenage racer suffered a big setback when mechanical problems prevented him from scoring points in the second round of the championship. A string of consistent results since then has allowed Power to climb back to second place in the championship and he is aiming to continue this on what he regards his home track.
As well as the Irish championship, the event will include the final round of the BTRDA Clubmans Rallycross Championship and a class for the newly introduced RX150 off-road race buggies.
Motors TV features the Kumho Tyres MSA British Rallycross Championship in a regular Friday night broadcast slot in 2008. The standalone shows will air at 10pm on second Friday after each round and will be repeated in the Motors TV schedule after the first airing, the Pembrey event will be screened at 10pm on October 10.
Event details Sunday September 28Kumho Tyres MSA British Rallycross Championship (round six of seven)Near Llanelli, 10 miles from M4 J48, (SA16 0HX)Racing starts at 1000Adult admission £12, accompanied upto 14s free.Further information: - 01554 891042. barc.net
2008 Kumho Tyres MSA British Rallycross Championship Sun-Mon Mar 23-24 Lydden Sat May 3 Pembrey Sun May 4 PembreySun Jul 6 Croft Mon Aug 25 Lydden Sun Sep 28 PembreySun Oct 14 Mondello Park (IRL)
